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There is a major issue facing the nonprofit industry; and it is the question of who will succeed your CEO? After the end of the Vietnam War, baby boomers moved into the workforce and many eventually became CEOs of existing nonprofits or started their own. Fast-forward to today when birth rates are half of what they were in the boomer era, and you find that many nonprofits are starting to feel the pinch for a successor of their CEO."

Millennials Give The Least, Want Money Used Wisely - The NonProfit TimesThe NonProfit Times: "You might want to put down the phone, or delay that mailing by a month or two. Nonprofits are 10 times more likely than donors to think the organization is not communicating enough with donors. For its first donor engagement study, Austin, Texas-based fundraising and software firm Abila surveyed more than 1,200 donors across four generational cohorts, as well as managers at 206 nonprofits with revenues ranging from $1 million to $49 million."

The Economics of Charity Telemarketing - HBR: "Nobody seems to like charity telemarketers. I have heard this statement so many times I can only assume it comes pre-recorded in the human frontal cortex at birth: “Charity telemarketers pocket 95% of every dollar you give. I just hang up on them.”

I’m here neither to praise or condemn charity telemarketers, but to shed some light on the economics of their work. The conventional wisdom is a dangerous and costly misperception. Here’s why:"

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Livestrong’s next chapter: Life after Lance | www.statesman.com: "Now, with a new chief executive and a renewed sense of mission, Livestrong is eager to move past the controversy that has bogged it down for almost three years and refocus the public’s attention on the good the nonprofit says it has done for millions of people affected by cancer around the world.

But how can an organization so inextricably tied to its founder move past a controversy spawned by him?"

The Power of Gratitude | Lynne Wester | LinkedIn: "This past week, we saw gratitude come full circle on a national stage. Jordan Spieth won the Masters on Sunday. And soon after his note of thanks for his high school scholarship became public on social media. In it he mentions his dream of winning the Masters. He also expresses his genuine gratitude to his donors. I am sure they were proud then, and I'm sure they swell with pride now."

San Antonio Scorpions: the soccer club that give their profits to charity | Football | The Guardian: "San Antonio Scorpions, the current North American Soccer League (NASL) title holders, are the only professional soccer team in the United States to operate with completely charitable intentions, the club claim. All net profits from the Scorpions, their stadium and a nearby soccer facility go towards funding Morgan’s Wonderland, a park for special needs individuals that is based on the same complex as the stadium."

The four recipients of its 2015 Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship, announced today at the foundation’s annual world forum in Oxford, England, have one habit in common: They all disrupt the status quo."

San Antonio Bike-Share Threatens to Close Without Major Sponsor – Next City: "But modern U.S. bike-sharing has been around for less than a decade and there are plenty of kinks to still work out, especially when it comes to management and operation structure and funding. For San Antonio, Texas’ B-Cycle system, solving the funding question soon could be a matter of survival."

Nebraska nonprofits can apply for chance to win up to $10,000 at State Fair - Omaha.com: Nebraska: "Nonprofit organizations in Nebraska can now apply online to reserve a spot at the 2015 Nebraska State Fair for a chance at winning up to $10,000.
Two winners will be chosen — one from communities with more than 50,000 people and one from communities with fewer than 50,000 people — to receive a donation from the State Fair. While at the fair, organizations can access visitors for solicitation of funds, item collection or program awareness."

In our opinion: Preserving America's spirit of philanthropy | Deseret News: "To be clear, that tone is set by people of more modest means. Studies show they tend to give more to charity, as a percentage of their income, than do wealthier people. Salt Lake County provides a ready example of this. Utah often leads the nation in charitable giving, as well as in terms of time donated to help others. A breakdown of giving shows that in Salt Lake County, those earning less than $25,000 a year give on average 11 percent of their salary, while those earning $200,000 or more give 6.14 percent. This is a giving nation, and that trait must be defended and nourished."

The Engagement Is Off: "According to a study by the software firm Blackbaud, millennials, born between 1981 and 1997, represent roughly 11 percent of donors in the United States. Seventy-five percent of young people donate (or are open to donating), according to a 2012 study by the Millennial Impact Project. But the vast majority of the gifts they give are less than $100 per organization, and just 15 percent contributed $500 or more."

Tips for making a move to a non-profit - The Globe and Mail: "Two years ago, after 20-plus years in executive roles in the for-profit sector, I accepted a role in the charitable sector as chief executive officer of CanadaHelps, a self-funded social enterprise that operates a leading online donations portal and provides affordable online fundraising technology and training to over 15,000 smaller charities in Canada."